Lyttelton, New Zealand
Lyttelton (Māori: Ōhinehou or Māori: Riritana)[2] is a port town on the north shore of Lyttelton Harbour / Whakaraupō, at the northwestern end of Banks Peninsula and close to Christchurch, on the eastern coast of the South Island of New Zealand.
Lyttelton
New Zealand
Banks Peninsula
Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū Banks Peninsula
- Banks Peninsula
- Te Tai Tonga (Māori)
4.52 km2 (1.75 sq mi)
3,180
700/km2 (1,800/sq mi)
As a landing point for Christchurch-bound seafarers, Lyttelton has historically been regarded as the "Gateway to Canterbury" for colonial settlers.[3][4] The port is a regular destination for cruise ships. It is the South Island's principal goods-transport terminal, handling 34% of exports and 61% of imports by value.[4]
In 2009 Lyttelton was awarded Category I Historic Area status by the Historic Places Trust (NZHPT) defined as "an area of special or outstanding historical or cultural heritage significance or value",[5] not long before much of the historic fabric was destroyed in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake.
Location[edit]
Lyttelton is the largest settlement on Lyttelton Harbour / Whakaraupō, an inlet on the northwestern side of Banks Peninsula extending 18 km inland from the southern end of Pegasus Bay. The town is situated on the lower slopes of the Port Hills, which form the northern side of the harbour and effectively separate Lyttelton from the city of Christchurch.[6][7] This steep-sided crater rim acts as a natural amphitheatre and a boundary to urban development.[8]
A tunnel through the Port Hills provides direct road access to Christchurch, 12 km to the northwest. The town of Sumner, some 6 km to the northeast, is accessed via Evans Pass, this link was closed after the 2011 Christchurch earthquake and reopened on 29 March 2019.[9] Another settlement at Governors Bay lies 10 km to the west and a frequent ferry service connects the suburb of Diamond Harbour on the southern shore of the harbour.
The uninhabited Ōtamahua / Quail Island sits in the upper harbour southwest of Lyttelton.
In popular culture[edit]
Lyttelton was the location for most of the exterior scenes in Peter Jackson's 1996 horror movie The Frighteners.[45][46] Paul Theroux described Lyttelton as having "pretty houses" but was frustrated by having to cycle over the Port Hills to get back to Christchurch, as cycling through the Lyttelton tunnel is not permitted, and told his wife "what an awful time I was having".[47]
Melanie Dixon's[48] young adult science fiction novel New Dawning is set in a future Lyttelton affected by climate change. It was released in April 2023 as the first part of a projected trilogy, The Edge of Light.[49]